Quick Hits

posted by Jay -
Nov 3, 2017

A new survey finds that half of Americans will probably or definitely shop on either Black Friday or Cyber Monday. The average shopper plans to spend about $475 during the two deal days, with men actually spending more than women, $570 vs. $385. 33% of people say they shop Black Friday in order to get a discount on expensive items, while 31% are looking for promotions that aren’t usually available during the rest of the year.

As if Drake's Devil Dogs weren’t yummy enough, they are now getting a delicious upgrade. The company just introduced Fudge Dipped Devil Dogs, which will be just what they sound like, two devil’s food cakes, sandwiched around vanilla crème, and then enrobed in delicious fudge. Drake's Fudge Dipped Devil Dogs will be sold in in supermarkets, supercenters, value retailers and convenience stores throughout the Eastern U.S.

As we previously told you,Starbucks just introduced their annual holiday cups, and now it’s McDonald’s turn to get in on the holiday spirit. The company just unveiled their seasonal cups, which are red, with the McCafe logo surrounded by stars and snowflakes, and tout a “Wonder in Every Sip.” The cups will make their debut in stores on November 6th. Meanwhile, McDonald’s holiday drinks have already hit the menu, including the Peppermint Mocha and the Peppermint Hot Chocolate. For a limited time, a small size of each drink is selling for just $2.

We’ve long since given up on the fountain of youth, but we’re still willing to spend big bucks on wellness treatments and eat a healthy diet of overpriced things from Whole Foods with the hopes of staying forever young. But now research from the University of Arizonafinds it might not be doing much good.

“Aging is mathematically inevitable — like, seriously, inevitable,” researcher JoannaMasel saysin a statement.“There’s logically, theoretically, mathematically no way out.” Depressing, right? Basically, scientists theorized they could stop the aging process by eliminating the cells that stop working as well as they get older. But doing that allowed other cells to flourish, and those cells cause cancer.

“What we show is that this forms a double bind — a Catch-22,” Masel explains. “If you get rid of the poorly functioning cells, then that allows cancer cells to proliferate, and if you get rid of or slow down the cancer cells, then that allows sluggish cells to accumulate.”

She says you can slow the aging process, but we’re all going to get old eventually, no matter how expensive the serum we use on our faces is. “The basic reason is that things break,” Masel says. “It doesn’t matter how much you try and stop them from breaking, you can’t.”

So it sounds pretty bleak, but it just means you’re not going to be the one woman who cheats aging by doing Pilates or using Retinol. But while you’re accepting the natural, inevitable cycle of life, if you feel better coloring your hair or getting Botox, at least you’ll be looking good while you’re here!

Grab your spoons and get ready because Ben and Jerry’s has a new ice cream collaboration with “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.” It’s called Marshmallow Moon and sounds pretty tasty: vanilla ice cream with marshmallows, graham cracker swirls, and fudge flakes.

Fans of The Tonight Dough don’t have to worry, that flavor isn’t going anywhere, it’s actually been one of Ben and Jerry’s best sellers since it came out. And it turns out, the ice cream makers actually developed Marshmallow Moon years ago and considered releasing it instead of Tonight Dough. But we still wish they had kept the now discontinued Late Night Snack, those chocolate-covered potato chips were salty and sweet perfection!

The new flavor is part of Ben and Jerry’s secretive Special Stash program, which includes artisan ice cream flavors that are only available for a limited time. And Fallon is donating all of his proceeds from pints sold to the SeriousFun Children’s Network,a recreation camp for kids with serious illnesses.

The TV show host is into his flavor. "I'm so excited about Marshmallow Moon,” Fallon says. “And the name totally makes sense, because the “Tonight Show” logo has a moon, and I have a body like a marshmallow."